


Gallivants

by Annie_malx



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Star Wars Fusion, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Asia, Ben Solo Needs A Hug, Europe, Everyone Needs A Hug, F/M, Happy Ending, Help, How Do I Tag, I Don't Even Know, I Tried, I Will Go Down With This Ship, I'm Bad At Tagging, I'm Sorry, Kylo Ren Has Issues, Kylo Ren and Rey Are Not Related, M/M, My First AO3 Post, My First Work in This Fandom, Mystery, North America, POV Rey (Star Wars), Past Abuse, Protective Finn, Rey Kenobi, Rey Needs A Hug, Reylo AU Week, Sexual Content, Slow Build, Slow Burn, South America, Star Wars References, Travel, What Was I Thinking?, World Travel
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-31
Updated: 2019-06-28
Packaged: 2020-04-05 06:20:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,584
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19042897
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Annie_malx/pseuds/Annie_malx
Summary: Rey's dying wish is to see the wonders that the world has to offer. With a sum of money, left by her parents and four years of hard work and college, she decides to quit on surviving and start living.  In the span of a year and a half, her goal is to round the globe, see all the green the planet has to offer and return home with a heart, full of new experiences and a soul reborn.Of course, things never go quite as planned and upon encountering a certain dark-haired moron, her travels turn from exciting to complicated. Especially when that certain moron is Kylo Ren. And especially when there is more to him than appearances suggest.**A world travel AU





	1. The world’s not ready for you to conquer it

**Author's Note:**

> Hello kind hoomans and Star Wars fans alike... 
> 
> First of all, I have absolutely no clue what I'm doing or how this will turn out but travelling the world had always been my biggest wish and I figured I could channel it into a piece of writing that, kinda, turned out to be a lot bigger than I'd imagined... I love Reylo, been here since 2015 when TFA first aired and I realised that writing about my two space idiots in any given universe really gives me a lot to work with so... Without further ado, fast in your seatbelts and enjoy one hell of a ride.
> 
> Oh and special thanks to @Philosophical_Army for kicking my ass into doing this...

**_gallivant_ **

ˈɡalɪvant,ˌɡalɪˈvant 

 **verb** : gallivant; 3rd person present: gallivants; past tense: gallivanted; past participle: gallivanted; gerund or present participle: gallivanting

**go around from one place to another in the pursuit of pleasure or entertainment.**

"she quit her job to go gallivanting around the globe"

 **synonyms** : gad, flit, jaunt, run, roam, wander, **travel** , range, rove, ramble, traipse, stray

"he goes gallivanting about looking for excitement"

**

**HOME**

 

She was radiant. Jumping around the apartment, music blasting through a portable JBL speaker, making a poorly attached shelf vibrate dangerously. Paying no mind to a potentially broken vase, set on the very edge of the shelf, the young woman moved to the beat around a fairly-demolished bedroom she had once called her own. Now, it was just a nice memory she was leaving behind. Her hair, tied up in three messy buns, a hairstyle significant for her, bobbed around when she danced, making her way through stashes of clothes. She had divided them to two groups: usable and trash and she was just finishing her sorting when a man’s head peeked into the loud room and yelled to drown out the music. 

“Rey! It’s almost time! We have to get going!”

Rey, startled by the sudden presence of a human being, bumped her head in the, formerly mentioned, shelf, that immediately tumbled towards the ground, greeting her head in the process. She yelped, taking hold of the loud speaker that fell on the ground too, and turned it off. Her eyes met the intruder’s.

“It is?” she asked, rubbing the pain off her forehead and then tilted her head at Finn, her best friend, whose chestnut eyes were peered at her. An innocent smile flashed over her face when she leaned down to gather the remnants of the shelf and set it on her bed.

“Peanut, I know you have a lot going on with the trip and all but getting your degree should mean at least something.”

It didn’t. Not even in the slightest. For years, Rey had struggled to ensure herself a proper education, worked hard to keep her grades above average and finished her studies before everyone else. Getting a handshake, a pat on the back and a piece of paper meant nothing to her. She didn’t see the point in sitting on a plastic chair, listen to people she had seen once around the campus speak about their incredible experiences and life-changing moments that the college provided them with; and then get incredibly drunk to seal off the part in her life that was thought to be a gem in the otherwise horrifying human’s existence. Rey laughed at the dramatizing every time. For her, life had only just began and she should be damned if she didn’t live it all to the fullest.

It had always been there, the need to prove to herself life was worth living.

Finn saw something in her eyes that made him step in the room and close the door. His eyes wandered around, focusing on a large backpack on the bed, halfway filled with clothes. There was a separate bag next to it and a single plane ticket neatly placed on top of it.

Rey followed Finn’s gaze, her eyes stopping on her backpacking gear again and letting the clothes she had gathered slip her grip and fall on the floor. She stepped closer to her friend, put a hand on his shoulder and made him look at her. His eyes were glassy.

“This. This means something, Finn. I don’t care about a degree, I’ve proven I deserve it way too many times to want to see it again.”

Finn smiled gently at her.

“You know damn well why me and Poe want you there. If you won’t go for yourself, at least do us the honour, our time together is running out.”

Rey rolled her eyes, nudging his shoulder with her palm.

“You’re acting like I’m facing the gallows tomorrow.”

Finn scoffed.

“It sure feels that way! The world’s… too big for you.”

The truth was, Rey wasn’t heading to her death. She saw it as her ticket to the world of the living more like it. She never knew her parents. They died when she was a baby. She was brought into an orphanage in eastern England and had been around foster homes ever since she knew of herself. For Rey, life began when she was 18 and there wasn’t a soul that could speak for her and even then, school was her preoccupation. She kept telling herself that life had to wait, that survival came first. It all started with a poster. Or several posters really. The foster family she was staying with at that time, the Andrews family, used to be travellers but eventually settled down. Rey was seven when she lived there. Mrs. Andrews was the nicest woman in the world and took the little girl as her own. She sang for her, took her to school every day and always made her hot chocolate. For a 7 year old, it was enough to give her a feeling of belonging. Mr. Andrews was a workaholic, stayed extra hours to ensure his family’s survival. They had a small son named Billy. When Rey arrived in their house, she was clutching a teddy bear, scared for her dear life. And the thing she was met with was a poster. Bigger than she was at that time. A beautiful, vast landscape greeted her home. Her eyes trailed the hills and rocks, the still water that came to life in front of her, the misty waterfalls and white, cotton clouds on the bluest of skies. It was the most beautiful thing she’d ever seen. Mrs. Andrews told her it was called Skye, an island in Scotland. As they proceeded deeper into the house, Rey was met with more posters; Thailand, Nepal, Russia, South America, Island. Each and every picture would brand itself in Rey’s mind, create a mental imagine and the only stable thing in her rather shaky life. On day one of staying at the Andrew’s, Rey decided she will see it all. She kept a diary, the only possession of her parents’. It was blank. After 7 years of her life, the little girl had a sparkle of a clue what it was meant for.

When she turned 10, she was moved from the Andrew’s, to another family. The Plutt’s. They were vile, cruel people, making Rey question everything she ever thought of humanity. Mr. Plutt was never home. It was either because of his job as an assistant manager in a firm Rey had no idea the name of or because he was visiting his mistress. Rey didn’t know if Mrs. Plutt was oblivious or just determined to ignore it. She was a rehabilitated alcoholic and drug abuser and worked as a volunteer in the local hospital. At the age of ten, Rey was too small to defend herself from their son Unkar, a loud, obnoxious boy that turned 15 when she moved in. He pushed her around, mocked her, pinched her, bit her, anything to draw tears. Rey became distant, wondering every night if she’d ever see Skye or Thailand. The diary was already filled with scribbles for the future, plans to keep her going. She lived at the Plutt’s for five years and by the time she turned 15, Mr. and Mrs. Plutt divorced and she was off again.

She lived in a boarding school and began college after the GCSEs she took when she was 16. She attended the Hastings College for four semesters, finishing her second year there. Due to her incredible skills for technical subjects and mathematics she had shown in those two years, she was offered an engineering scholarship by the time she turned 18. She had two options: stay in the UK or jump the puddle and seek her luck in the United States. Being an adventure hunting teenager, she chose the latter immediately. For all those years, her wish of travelling prevailed. After three more years of advanced computer engineering she chose as her main course, Rey was a graduated engineer. And she knew it was time. Her extra hours working at the campus’ bakery were barely enough to pay the rent, but her parents had not left her with just a diary. With a fair sum stashed as her extra stock, Rey moved in the campus apartments with Finn, a fellow student and his boyfriend Poe. The girl immediately started saving money. Her plan was to travel the world. She decided to take a break from everything reality-related for a year and a half. The diary was stashed with flyers of different travelling agencies, plans for her journey, financial outcome and various calculations that came with, a general idea for the sequence of places she’d visit and a to do list. It was the most recent addition to the book and it had brought tears to Rey’s eyes when she was writing it. She couldn’t bring herself around to comprehending she was _actually_ doing it.

“Hey, Rey?” Finn waved a hand in front of her face and she realised she had been staring at the backpack. She shivered to gather her thoughts, rubbed her forehead and hissed when she reached a certain spot. Her scalp definitely took a toll from the shelf incident.

“Sorry, I just can’t get myself to realize I’m actually doing it…”

Finn nodded understandingly and took her small hand in between his larger ones.

“You are, Rey, you are but right now, there’s a certain event we should attend and I want you there. You leave tomorrow, I want to spend as much time with you as I can. Call me selfish,” the man spoke, making Rey sigh. He was right.

She should've spent as much time with him and Poe as possible. She had been so busy with preparations for the trip, running from one shop to the other, that she put everything else aside. She nodded gently. “Give me a few to get ready.” Finn’s face lit up like a Christmas tree when he heard her say those small words. Victoriously, he strode out of the room, pumped to go tell Poe he finally persuaded the “devil”. Rey rolled her eyes and laughed then closed the door behind her friend and slumped against it, exhaling tiredly. She scanned the rampaged room, smiling to herself again dreamily and pushed herself off the door to go get ready.

 

**

 

The room was too crowded. She felt like choking when she stepped into the large hall, everyone already seated and ready for the ceremony to begin.

 _Just a little while longer…_ She told herself, taking a seat next to Finn. His hand connected with hers and so did Poe’s and together, they awaited the end of an era.

Perhaps, Rey should have felt bad, felt a familiar sting in her chest when she heard everyone cry for the days that will never return, at least feel a hit of nostalgia but she felt nothing. Of course, leaving Finn and Poe, the closest she has ever had to a family, affected her but for what was to come, leaving the pair for a year and a half seemed like a small price to pay. A girl she remembered from one of the few parties she attended, cried onstage, speaking of the past. Rey hated to speak of the past. It was worthless to do so. She always turned away from it. It was easy not to miss. She had too much to miss to let that destroy her.

After receiving her degree, Poe, Finn and herself decided to celebrate it nevertheless. They went to their usual spot: a coffee shop on the west of the Binghamton University campus just outside of New York. The coffees there were their ritual at least once a day before or after classes or in the middle of the night when they needed something to keep them from falling asleep on their books.

 _The Cave_ , the students called it, because of the steep stairs that led to the underground, spacious bar. On the right side was a large counter all dressed in wood, almost homely. There were various tables scattered around and a few younger students were speaking loudly, getting their fair share of caffeine and gossip. Music filled Rey’s ears as they descended. A small woman stared at the trio from behind the bar and clapped her hands.

“There they go! My dearest graduates!” she yelled and almost jumped over the counter to get to them. She was at least ten inches smaller than Rey, her big glasses peered into the three students happily. Rey could’ve sworn she saw her eyes water but it was discernible due to the large glasses that slumped over their host's nose.

“Hey Maz,” they all exclaimed in a choir, letting the woman shake each of their hands and cling onto them.

“I can’t believe it has been three years! Even more for you two,” she pointed at Poe and Finn whose hands were intertwined.

“Dear God, I can still remember the hopeless flirting Poe was performing right there,” her small finger pointed at one of the chairs by the main counter. Poe flushed, very visibly, hiding his face in his hands and laughed.

“It was that bad?” Finn and Maz both nodded rapidly. A an answer, Poe held onto Rey.

“Side with me,” he muttered to her, making the girl's eyebrows furrow.

“What do I get from it?”

A significant eyeroll was what she received from the man afterwards but nevertheless, he spoke: “I’ll buy you a milkshake.”

Rey was hooked immediately. Maz’s milkshakes were the stuff of heaven and at the end of semesters, Rey always treated herself with one. It was her own little ritual.

“Give Poe some credit, he probably spent half of his yearly budget on Finn’s drinks just to keep him from running.”

Poe stared at her as did Maz and Finn and at the end, they all burst out laughing

“There goes your milkshake,” Poe said between laughs. Rey just shrugged.

 

**

 

In the end, she got her strawberry flavoured milkshake, Maz wouldn't even hear their mentions of payment. The woman was determined that it was all on the house, a graduation gift.

They sat in a booth in the far back of the bar, bringing old memories to life and talking about the three years they had survived together. As much as Rey believed she wouldn’t care, she was constantly reminded that she wouldn't be able to talk to her two best friends like that for a long time and it brought tears to her eyes numerous times. And yet, here was a rising excitement in her chest. The lump in her throat was choking her, she felt like running for a hundred miles and run some more, jump around and scream, anything to make the dreadful but sweet feeling of anticipation leave her body. She was never as scared and determined at the same time. There were times she zoned out, remembering the old Skye poster, remembering she’ll get to see it all, feel the world come to life around her. Poe and Finn were understanding and when they saw her rub her palms together, her hands shake, they’d always say a word or two of encouragement.

After two hours of conversating, Rey knew the couple wanted to spend some time alone and as much as they protested when she stood up and bid them a nice evening, she wasn’t having it. She knew Poe was planning something big, they’ve spoken about it a week prior to their graduation. It was only to be expected that the two men would get engaged at some point and since they’ve been together for right about three years, Poe felt like they should take a step forward. Rey supported him fully.

He came to her room one night when Finn was at soccer practice and sat on her bed, crossing his legs the way he always did. His arms immediately wrapped around one of Rey’s pillows. When he mentioned what he was planning, Rey’s mind couldn’t wrap itself around it for a while. It was all ahead of her own time. Her two best friends were getting engaged meanwhile her life revolved around her travels so much she didn’t even have time for romance. There were men in her life, three to be exact but it always resulted in it being just a fling, the heat of the moment. Her relationship with them was physical, never emotional. Rey couldn’t afford a reason to stay.

Rey would be lying if she said they didn’t have a drink after the news because when Finn returned, they were playing their old Wii console, screaming at each other at the top of their lungs with an empty wine bottle on the table and Chinese takeaway already on its way.

The Cave was filled with students by the time Rey took her leave. She leaned on the counter to say goodbye to Maz, aware that it was the last time she was seeing the woman in a very long time. When Maz noticed her, she stopped short on her way to the pantry and had one of her employees get the milk for the milkshakes meanwhile she, herself, walked towards Rey, taking hold of her hands. Maz’s large eyes narrowed when she stared into Rey’s brown ones.

“My dear child, the world’s not ready for you to conquer it.”

Rey smiled gently down at her, seeing the only mother figure she’d ever had in the woman. The pair hugged for a long time, Maz whispering encouraging words to her and Rey holding back the tears threatening to spill down her cheeks.

“I’ll miss you, Maz. And your coffees. And your milkshakes,” Rey said after the two broke their embrace. Maz let out a chuckle.

“My doors are always opened for you, Rey. And when you come back, I’ll make sure there will be a milkshake waiting on your table.”

With that, they hugged again briefly and Rey was on her way out of the bar, climbing up the set of stairs and inhaling the fresh air. The wind blew in her hair when she walked down the campus street, students all around her, getting ready for the party to start. As much as Finn wanted her to be presentable for the graduation, Rey was wearing All-Stars and a black dress that wrapped around her body down to her hips and then widen in a fluffy skirt. She decided against a leather jacket (Finn said she looked like she was attending a funeral) and instead went with a jeans jacket that she was pulling harsher around her small figuredue to the cold wind chilling her to the bone. It was strange considering it was June.

The walk from The Cave back to their apartment took her about ten minutes. She pushed her earphones in and listened to music as she walked, her mind wandering again. She was shaking. And she knew it wasn’t merely because of the cold.

When she reached her home after climbing a set of stairs to the third floor, she fiddled with the keys in the darkness of the hallway. The light on their floor had been out for about two weeks, making Rey’s night homecomings quite spooky. She used the flashlight on her phone in the end but a certain anxiety rose within her whenever she stood in the dark and all she wanted was a locked door parting her from the consuming void. That night was no different. The dark hallway sent a set of shivers down her spine when she lit the phone up, afraid to look anywhere but straight ahead, at the door.

After a few long lasting, torturous seconds, Rey finally managed to unlock the entrance to her home and slipped inside, locking herself back in momentarily. She turned on the light, hung her jacket on one of the chairs around their small dining table and walked further into the apartment, into her room.

“I’ve got a lot of work ahead of me,” she mumbled to herself when she was greeted by the, still, demolished bedroom.

With a sigh, Rey rubbed her forehead and dove into the preparations yet again.


	2. Of dark eyes and warm goodbies

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, hello, hello *insert Emma Robert's "surprise bitch, bet you thought you'd seen the last of me" gif*, school was kicking my ass and I went to work right after finishing so I had little to no time for anything else but here is chapter 2... It's not my finest piece of writing but I felt like it was necessary to post it nevertheless... So, without further ado, proceed to chapter 2 of Gallivants !!  
> \- Anna x

“I ain’t getting married without her there, no way in hell!” Finn bit back, smirking at Poe who rolled his eyes. Rey was sitting in the backseat of Poe’s black Mitsubishi Mirage, her chin resting on the back of Finn’s seat.

“Whatever, you’re the boss,” she heard Poe speak.

“I wish you could be there peanut…Help me plan… I mean it though,” the man turned to his fiancé again with a serious look, “no wedding until Rey’s back.” Rey opened her mouth to protest, shaking her head, wanting to say how they shouldn’t wait, that she could FaceTime them, but Finn lifted his hand to shush her. “No, miss Kenobi. My wedding, my decision.”

She saw Poe roll his eyes yet again, noting how the gesture slowly _became_ him. “You know, I AM here too,” he barked but Finn scoffed, waving him off.

“Oh, puh-lease, we all know people will come to MY wedding to see me, honey. You’re just an accessory.”

Rey was the first to start laughing. Poe gently slapped Finn’s thigh, chuckling and shaking his head. Finn did his best to retain a serious expression for as long as he could. Eventually, he joined in on the laughter nevertheless.

Once their laughter died down, the silence fell on the cabin of the car.And along came thoughts. Rey’s eyes followed the road signs, each pointing them to JFK, the John F. Kennedy airport of New York City. Her smile faded almost instantly. She was _actually_ going. No matter what, she couldn’t wrap her head around the fact. It was driving her mad. The anxiety from the night before was back but this time, it was so intense Rey thought she’d have to ask Poe to stop the car and vomit on the side of the road. Carefully, so as to not cause a scene, she remained as quiet as she could for the duration of the trip, listening to the couple’s banter on the front seats.

She stuck to the thought that she should have taken a train to the centre of New York, sparing Poe the gas for the almost-4-hours’ trip, however, the man wasn’t having it. He’d drive for eight hours in total just to hug her goodbye. The dedication made Rey’s heart ache with affection again.

They stopped at a gas station to get coffee. When Rey checked the time on her phone, it showed 7:18am, giving her a five hours’ head start. She was leaning on the car with Poe, sipping the bitter coffee, waiting for Finn to come back from the restrooms. The morning was fresh, but first sunbeams lit up her face, warming it up. A gentle wind breeze came as a welcoming factor too.

“I admire you, you know,” she heard Poe say so she turned her head to look at him, her expression puzzled. “Never in my life have I ever been so… passionate about a thing, never stuck to something for long. I’m interested in something, obsess over the, said, thing for maybe a month and it passes in the blink of an eye. I never stick to anything… But you… You’ve dedicated your life to this. Your entire life! Fuck, I can only imagine how you must be feeling right now…”

Rey listened to him attentively, crossing her arms on her chest and shrugging. “Hope was all I had at some point. There had to be something to keep me going and it fell right into my lap. It’s been my anchor for fourteen years. Once it’s serious enough, you get attached. It’s not a complex, Poe. Your lack of focus. It’s just the fact that nothing as big as this has fallen in your lap yet.” She saw Finn approach. “Or maybe it has, and you didn’t notice it.”

With a soft smile, the girl nodded once at Finn. Poe watched him too, chewing the insides of his cheeks, apparently processing her words. After a while, when Finn was almost in the hearing range, he turned to look at Rey and nodded. “You’re damn right.” Rey let out a small chuckle, ducking her head to avoid him ruining her hair by ruffling it and Finn smiled at the pair.

“All the fun goes down without me, eh?” Poe pulled him close then kissed his cheek, allowing Rey to squeeze herself between them for a warm-hearted embrace.

They proceeded with their journey for another hour and a half. Soon, the first skyscrapers of New York’s Manhattan appeared on the horizon. _This is it_ , she thought, breathing shallowly. Rey was afraid. Underneath the excitement and building realisation, there was fear. For just about anything. What scared her were the endless possibilities she could encounter. The endless possibilities of a failure. Alongside the biggest fear of all: disappointment. Too long had she spent wrapped in the stinking covers at Plutt’s, reading through Travel Journals, writing it down for herself to make it reality one day. Too long had she dreamed of the day she’d board that one plane and start living. The fear of it all disappointing her was the one haunting her waking day. No matter how many times she had told herself it’d all be okay, it’d be even better than she thought, her mind slipped back to wondering if her perspective of the world was false. And around the clock she went over and over again, weighing the options. She came to a conclusion that she was too young a year ago. The next morning, she was buying Lonely Planet in the local bookstore, making first scraps of the travel plan. The wait was excruciating. Rey knew she had enough money to do it. The sum her parents left her with had not been released until she was eighteen. Her eyes watered at the thought of her parents. Looking up towards the sky, she hoped they were there, somewhere. As much as she wasn’t a woman who’d indulge in spiritual, religious activities, Rey knew there was something out there, keeping her from falling, protecting her from harm.

_Could it be God?_ Rey knew not, she never got far enough to sit down and think about God, about a divinity connecting good and evil in the world but whenever she succeeded, she thanked… _something_. Her gratitude could not be left unspoken. There were days she prayed. During her years at the Plutt’s, Rey used to sneak into the living room and watch movies on Unkar’s television. Only for a few minutes, when everyone was asleep in the house. One night she stumbled across a film presenting Christianity. She didn’t like the sound of it. Living on earth should not be a sin, she told herself. But the next day, her hands were folded neatly on her bed, kneeling, her eyes closed. She had no idea how to pray. And still, she did. She prayed for a better tomorrow, she prayed for her parents, wherever they were, she prayed for her hopes and dreams and no loose opportunities.

“Peanut, 20 minutes to go.” The moment Finn reminded her, Rey’s stomach twisted in a rather unnatural way and she gasped for air. Her heartbeat travelled all the way up to her ears. Closing her eyes to gather herself, Rey inhaled and exhaled controllably, wishing for it to stop and at the same time wanting to feel the excitement forever. A gentle touch on her hand made her look up at Finn, whose eyes were scanning hers. With a thankful smile, the woman held onto her friend, nodding to assure him she was going to be alright. Those twenty minutes Finn mentioned passed so quickly, Rey needed a hand getting out of the car. The fresh air, as fresh as it could be in the middle of smoggy New York, did her well. While Poe worked to get her backpack out of the trunk, Rey fiddled with the things in her bag, trying to locate sunglasses and a boarding pass. After a while of digging, she fished out both, put the pass in her jacket pocket and her sunglasses on. The clock showed 10:13am, two hours until the departure. Finn and herself waited for Poe to park the car before they headed inside together, the large backpack weighing Rey down slightly. She knew she’d get used to it eventually as her eyes travelled around the ground floor of terminal 1 of the JFK airport, making it seem even bigger than on pictures.

The people around her were running around, some checking in, some purchasing tickets, some saying goodbye and some sitting around the coffee shops, enjoying the lasts sips of American coffee. Rey stepped towards the luggage check-in, getting her passport out as well and handed it to the kind looking lady sitting at the desk. When she was asked to put her luggage down to weigh it, she frowned. For a while, the girl hesitated but eventually set the luggage down and was left with a linen bag, watching the container of all her possessions slowly slip behind a curtain. “Make way for the others, miss.,” the airport employee said, with a smile on her face that made Rey feel bad for stalling. She grabbed her passport and her boarding pass, slipping away as unseen as possible.

Until she was met by a tall man, a running tall man that knocked her over. She stumbled back and slid across the polished, stone floor when she fell.

“Ouch,” she whined, rubbing her left shoulder where the impact was the worst. The man was wearing sunglasses, so she couldn’t see his eyes and his dark figure made her uncomfortable. His raven black hair was messy, from the running, Rey deducted, and his broad shoulders towered over the confused girl, making her feel trapped. She sat on the ground for a few seconds, expecting for the guy to be a tad respectable but after a few intense seconds of them staring at one another, Rey threw her hands in the air and helped herself up, straightening the white shirt she wore that crumpled at the hems. “By all means, do stand there,” she said, rolling her eyes.

And then the man seemed to come to senses. Or something between those lines. “You should’ve watched where you were going,” he said with a low voice that bordered to a growl, coming from the depths of his throat but it wasn’t coated in anger like she’d expected. Much to her dismay, it was something a whole lot worse: annoyance. Rey felt at loss of words. _He dared!?_

“Excuse me, if you weren’t late for whatever flight you’re going to, this wouldn’t have happened. And the least you could do was apologise.” His expression was unreadable due to the sunglasses standing like a banner between them, revealing nothing, however Rey noticed a slight twitch in his jaw when he spoke again as if he was trying to realise words that never came to his mouth and he chose option number two. That, somehow, pissed Rey off even more. “I have a flight to catch and from what I’ve seen on your boarding pass, here you go by the way,” he handed her the piece of paper that must’ve slipped her grip when she fell, and she took it hesitant to reach forward, noting his hands were ridiculously big. “Yeah, from what I’ve noticed, you’re headed to Paris too. I suggest you get going, these terminals are tricky. And the gates are even trickier.”

He lifted his sunglasses just enough to scratch under his left eye, then saluted her and walked past, his shoulder brushing her much smaller one for a second. Rey stood in place, un-blinking, with her boarding pass in her still stretched hand, for a few seconds, thinking of running behind theunpleasant traveller to tell him off but deciding against causing a scene at an international airport and headed towards where Finn and Poe were supposedly buying them another coffee. She kept muttering curses under her breath for the man as she clutched and unclutched her fists. 

A small alarm did go off at his words though that she couldn’t prevent from triggering.

_There terminals are tricky. And the gates are even trickier._

As much as she wanted to ignore the fact that the encounter ever occurred, she knew the stranger was right. It was time for her to go. And the way he said it made her feel disgusted by his entire being. He wasn’t mocking her, it wasn’t mocking but rather… pitying, unacceptance that she was his equal.

“What a bastard,” she muttered under her breath right when Poe and Finn came out of the coffee shop with three cups. Rey’s frown was replaced by a smile almost instantly, but it was one of sadness. The same as Finn’s.

“I… I have to get going. The… They say the terminals can be tricky,” she managed to let out. Finn’s immediate reaction was to lunge forward, wrap his arms around her small figure and capture her in a bone-crushing embrace. She usually complained but this time, she clung onto him with all her might, afraid that if she didn’t hold on, her best friend might disappear into thin air sooner than she’d want. Her eyes watered easier than the night before and she didn’t even feel it as the hot tears surfaced, began streaming down her cheeks. After a long while, she couldn’t even comprehend the time slipping her grip, Finn pulled away, holding her close still.

His hand brushed her cheek when he spoke: ”Go get them, peanut.”

She let out a choked sob, her head nodding automatically. She was handed the coffee afterwards, having to almost spill it down her throat and when she was done gulping it down, her eyes travelled towards the check-in point. Poe followed her gaze. His arm wrapped around Rey’s shoulder, inviting her to lean into his embrace which she most gladly accepted. The presence of another human body so close to her sparked another emotion in her: _loneliness_. The check-in point was her ticket to freedom. And with that followed loneliness. She knew she wouldn’t have anyone hug her the way Poe or Finn did for a long time. Her head rested on Poe’s shoulder, as they both sighed simultaneously, their chests heavy with unspoken words and deeds that were useless in the short span of time that was left to them. Neither of them wanted to say anything.

_What was there to say?_

“The gate will be opening soon,” she heard Poe speak, making her pull away, too fast for her liking but she did nevertheless and turned her head away from the entrance of the check-in. Slowly, they began walking in the direction of the security check. Her hands were shaking so hard she shoved them down the pockets of her jeans, hoping to calm the raging nerves in her gut. Poe and Finn walked beside her, hand in hand. And the ring on Finn’s finger reflected the sun coming from the ceiling windows, it’s diamond’s glow stinging Rey’s eyes when she noticed it. However, a smile was drawn on her lips, a calm energy overflowing her. They would be fine without her. She knew. There was a whole new adventure ahead of the couple. And it didn’t involve her. Rey couldn’t third wheel forever. There had to be an end to every beginning. And a beginning to every end. Rey’s trip was both. Being both, she didn’t know whether to rejoice the start or mourn the end. Perhaps there was a balance between the two. A peace of mind she’d find herself in.

_Only time would tell._

As the large entrance approached, Rey’s eyes scanned the signs for gates, finding gate number 5 and turned to walk towards it. Above the many signs for gates, 11 to be exact, was a large, yellow sign reading: **SECURITY CHECK-POINT.** Rey found it strangely intimidating. She clutched the bag in her hands, adjusting her sunglasses that nearly slipped down her nose and nervously bit the insides of her cheeks. There wasn’t a large queue for the check, so Rey stopped a few feet away, her eyes once again meeting the two men whose expressions were unreadable. Something between worry and happiness.

She felt tears threaten her eyes again but before she could say anything, Poe cleared his throat: “We thought we’d get you something for the trip. To keep you safe… Finn thought of it and as much as you’ll call it a cliché, I like it…”

Rey frowned as they both lifted their arms, exposing their wrists that bore silver bracelets. The woman took a step closer, noticing each had a pendant. A small, silver star. Poe stepped closer, pinching the third bracelet on her own wrist. The metal felt cold against the girl's skin but pleasant nevertheless. Hers was golden. With the same star.

In disbelief, Rey looked up from where she was just admiring the beautiful accessory. “To light your way, wherever you go. And to light your way back home.”

Finn’s words struck her to the very core of her beating heart.. Without a word said, she pulled them both in a final hug. They responded equally eager to never let her go. She tried her best to remember it. The way their arms wrapped around her, the way their uneven breaths felt in her hair or how Finn's hand caressed her back. Rey had to remember her family. The only family she ever had.

“I love you two. And I’ll find my way home, you be sure of that.”

She noticed them both nodding in sync. Strangely so, Rey was the first to pull away. 

“I suck at goodbyes,” she admitted sheepishly.

“Then don’t say it,” Poe said, gently, his kind eyes assuring her a goodbye wasn’t needed.

Rey nodded with a large smile.

“Be safe, Rey, keep us posted. And FaceTime us, every day. Or every other day.”

Rey laughed again through the tears at Finn’s motherly instinct.

“Yes, mom.”

She swung the linen bag she carried over her shoulder, adjusting it so it wouldn’t slip down. In the meantime, Poe took hold of Finn’s hand, preventing him from walking after Rey. There was a warning in all their heads. Their time had run out. The clock had ticked its last tick.

Walking backwards, Rey’s eyes remained fixed on the two. She lifted her arm, exposed her wrist and tapped twice on the bracelet with her index finger. She gained a fair distance from them both by then. Every step hurt even more than the previous one, yet every step felt as if a large weight was lifted off her from above. The world was ahead. And her family was behind. The pain of leaving was in no way overshadowing the desire to go. And Rey followed that instinct. Right before the entrance to the check, she stopped to see Poe and Finn tapping their own bracelets. She gave them one last smile, turned around and walked into the check.


End file.
